Between Nov. 1942 and Aug. 1945, Stanley W Safford wrote around 180 letters to his mother. These were found neatly preserved in the order they were received, in his old bedroom at his parents'. They were wrapped with a green ribbon. Stanley was one of the first Army medics. He spent 19 months at Fort Sam Houston, TX training other medics. His group was attached to the Ninth Army in the Summer of 1944. His letters give a front row seat to a medic's life during WWII.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

PRATT -- William Coleman,
M.D., was born in Sallisaw, OK on
January 18, 1912 to Ella Coleman
Pratt and John Howard Pratt. Upon
his graduation from Central High
School in Muskogee, OK in 1929,
he was awarded a scholarship to
Washington University in St. Louis,
MO, where he received his Bachelor's Degree in 1933. There he was
the house manager for and a member of Phi Delta Theta Fraternity.
He was a swimming and life saving
instructor at the Muskogee YMCA
for one year prior to entering medical school at Washington University, graduating in 1938. During his
internship at Geisinger Memorial
Hospital in Danville, PA, he met
his wife, Elva, who was a nursing
student. They were married on February, 14, 1941 in Des Moines, IA.
Following his first year of surgical
residency at Geisinger, he volunteered for service in the U.S. Army,
serving for 5 years during WWII.
He was stationed at Fort Des
Moines, IA, Camp Leonardwood,
MO, Carlisle Barracks, PA, Randolph Field, TX and Fort Sam
Houston, TX. His service included
1-1/2 years with the
5th Auxiliary Surgical Group in the European
Theater of Operations. He was
awarded the Eurpean African Middle Eastern Service Medal with 3
battle stars and the Bronze Star for
his service. Following his military service, he continued his training in
Rochester, MN, where he was a
Fellow at the Mayo Clinic, completing a 31/2 year residency program
and earning a Masters of Science in
Surgery Degree from the University
of Minnesota in 1948. His many
accomplishments include membership in the Mayo Foundation for
Medical Education and Research
(1949), Fellow in the American
College of Surgeons (1954), Fellow
of the Southwestern Surgical Congress (1956), American Board of
Surgery (1970), member of the Tulsa County Medical Society and a
life member of the American Medical Association. He was an Associate at Children's Medical Center in
Tulsa, when it was known as "Sunnyside," served as Chief of Staff at
St. Francis Hospital for one year
and was a staff member at St. John
Hospital, Hillcrest and St. Francis.
Dr. Pratt practiced surgery at
Springer Clinic for 20 years. He is
survived by his wife of 63 years, Elva of the home; and 6 children,
Lorraine Pratt (Houston), William
Pratt, Jr. (Tulsa), Dr. John Pratt
and wife, Sharon (Denver), Nancy
Slater and husband, John (Albuquerque), Betsy Long and husband,
Lyn (Tulsa), and Thomas Pratt,
M.D. and wife, Marsha (Edmond);
10 grandchildren, William Shockley
(Los Angeles), Bart Shockley
(Houston), Bryce Shockley (Houston), Kerri Snyder (Charlotte, NC),
William Pratt III (Tulsa), Matthew
Slater (Seattle), Nicole Slater (Albuquerque), and Eric, Sarah and Laura Pratt (Edmond). His great-grandchildren are
Cooper, Hayden
and Carson Shockley (Houston)
and Ashton Shockley (Houston).
He was preceded in death by his
parents and son, James Wood Pratt.
Dr. Pratt dedicated his life to surgery, and the pursuit of knowledge
and service to his patients. He had
a deep appreciation of the fine arts,
and the beauty and wonders of nature. He was an avid reader, an accomplished artist and proud of his
Cherokee heritage. His life is celebrated and cherished by the family,
friends and former patients to
whom he was so devoted. Private
family memorial service will be held
at All Souls Unitarian Church. Cremation Society of Oklahoma,
599-7337.

AMHERST - Calvin H. Plimpton, 88, physician-educator and former president of Amherst College, died Jan. 30 in Westwood.
He died of complications following surgery for a fractured hip.
Dr. Plimpton was born in Boston on Oct. 18, 1918, and grew up in Walpole, just outside of Boston. He was educated at
Phillips Exeter Academy, Amherst College, class of 1939 and the Harvard Medical School, class of 1943. He served in Central
Europe,
5th Auxiliary Surgical Group during World War II.
He returned to Harvard for a master's in biochemistry, 1947. He also received a doctor of medical science from Columbia
University, College of Physicians and Surgeons, in 1952.
In the course of a long, distinguished career, he piloted three institutions of higher learning through turbulent times
and played a pivotal role in directing many others. He was trained as a physician and the first inkling of what he sometimes
referred to as his itchy feet occurred when he took a leave from the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons to be chairman
of the department of medicine at the American University of Beirut, 1957-1959.
He believed that a "doctor tries to educate people to live," and so it was a logical step to become the 13th president
of Amherst College, a position he held from 1960 to 1971. In his opening address to the college in September 1960, he charged
the students, faculty and guests to "Ask not what Amherst College can do for you, ask what you can do for Amherst College."
Four months later, he was startled to hear President John F. Kennedy use the same turn of phrase in his inaugural address
to the nation. When Kennedy came to Amherst for the ground breaking of the Robert Frost Library on Oct. 22, 1963, he asked
Kennedy where he had gotten the phrase. Kennedy replied, "I don't know, Cal ... where did you get it?"
While he was at Amherst College, there had been talk among the neighboring four college presidents of jointly founding
a fifth, more experimental college. The plans languished until Dr. Plimpton convinced Harold Johnson to donate the initial
funding of $6 million and Hampshire College was born.
In 1971, he returned to New York, where he was president of the Downstate Medical School until 1978 and a professor
of medicine until 1983. He then spent a year at the National Library of Medicine, working in international affairs.
He was a member of the Board of Trustees of the American
University of Beirut for 23 years, becoming chairman of the
board in 1965. After the then president of the University, Malcolm Kerr,
was assassinated outside his campus office in 1984,
Plimpton agreed to take over as president. His three years in the
position were marked by escalating insecurity and the kidnapping
of professors and other Americans. In an attempt to bring stability to
the situation, he journeyed to Amman, Jordan, to meet
with Yasir Arafat. The meeting occurred on Arafat's turf, and in the
middle of the meeting, Dr. Plimpton, ever on the lookout
to interject a bit of humor, turned to Arafat and inquired in broken
Arabic if there were any thoughts of kidnapping him,
to which Arafat replied, with a sly grin, "No, college presidents don't
command any ransom." In retelling the story, Dr. Plimpton
noted that clearly Arafat had done his homework.
In addition to the American University of Beirut, he was trustee of the World Peace Foundation from 1961 to 1977, director
of the Commonwealth Fund from 1962 to 1984, trustee of University of Massachusetts from 1962 to 1969, trustee of Phillips
Exeter Academy from 1965 to 1975, president of the board from 1972 to 1979, Harvard University Board of Overseers from 1969
to 1975, Executive Committee from 1969 to 1974, trustee of Long Island University from 1972 to 1980, and a trustee of New
York Law School from 1976 to 1984.
He is survived by his wife of 65 years; Ruth Talbot, and four children; David of Brooklyn, N.Y., Polly of Boston, Tom
of Leverett, and Edward of Amherst; and seven grandchildren. There will be a memorial service at Amherst College in the spring.

Dr. Alvin Leonard - Berkeley's ex-director of public health

San Francisco Chronicle (CA) - Thursday, May 29, 2008

Dr. Alvin Leonard, a onetime director of public health for the city of Berkeley who mixed his passion for medicine with
a commitment to peace, has died of pneumonia. He was 90.
A lifelong advocate for public health, he urged employees in the city health department to run up and down stairs decades
before the advice became trendy. He launched a campaign to promote use of seat belts before they were made standard equipment
in U.S. automobiles.
He helped to establish the Berkeley Free Clinic, monitored sanitary conditions at the request of Native Americans during
their 1969 occupation of Alcatraz, and counted among his most satisfying achievements his arrest during a protest at the Nevada
Nuclear Test Site in 1988.
"He was the kind of person who engendered trust. He was clearly there to help people," said his daughter, Cathy Leonard.
Dr. Leonard was Berkeley's public health director from 1957 to 1970, and after teaching for five years at the University
of Arizona he returned to California for a variety of posts in state and county health departments. Dr. Dileep Bal, the former chief of the Cancer Control Section for
the California Department of Health Services, remembered
Dr. Leonard as a "friend, mentor and my guru." An early anti-smoking
advocate, Dr. Leonard advised Bal during the creation
of the state health department's tobacco control section.
"Al was a very low-key, understated, modest man - of giant intellect," said Bal. "He was one of the unrecognized geniuses
of public health in this country."
Among his achievements was the establishment of statewide programs to control high blood pressure among different ethnic
groups.
Dr. Leonard retired in 1984, but continued to consult on public health affairs for decades. He was a picture of health
himself, rising at 6 a.m. to jog through the Berkeley hills five days a week. He continued that ritual past his 90th birthday
in January, until he fell ill with pneumonia in February. He died at Alta Bates Medical Center April 20.
Born in New York City, he was raised in Los Angeles and graduated from UCLA in 1938. He graduated at the head of his
class at the University of Southern California Medical School in 1942.
He joined the U.S. Army in 1943, and served in Europe as an anesthesiologist in the
5th Auxiliary Surgical Group
. His family said that the experience led him to become a pacifist. He was active in the organization Physicians for
Social Responsibility, a leading organization of doctors opposing the use and spread of nuclear weapons.
Dr. Leonard is survived by his wife, Pearl of Berkeley; and daughters Barbara of Levallois-Perret, France, and Cathy
of Richmond.
A memorial service is being planned. Donations can be made in Dr. Leonard's name to Physicians for Social Responsibility,
San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, 2288 Fulton St., Suite 307, Berkeley, Ca., 94707.

Dr James W Kelley

Tulsa World (OK) - Thursday, August 13, 2009

Section: TransitionsPage: A12

KELLEY - Dr. James W., 94, Topeka, KS passed away on Monday, August 10, 2009, at Lexington Park. Dr. Kelley was born
January 22, 1915, in Wilmington, DE, the son of John W. and Bertha (Faulkner) Kelley. He served in the U.S. Army during World
War II and was awarded the Bronze Star for service between August 1944 and May 1945. He performed more than 400 major operations
during his combat service with the 105th Evacuation Hospital in Europe and was named Chief Surgeon of the
5th Auxiliary Surgical Group. He graduated from the University of Delaware and Duke University
School of Medicine in Durham, NC. He was the first
resident in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Duke. Dr. Kelley had a
private practice in Tulsa, OK, from 1949 until 1970.
He served as head of the Student Health Department at Washburn
University from 1971 until his retirement in 1981. He served
as President of the Tulsa County Medical Society and the Oaks Country
Club in Tulsa. He was chosen by the Topeka Chamber of
Commerce for the Top Hat Award based on his commitment and service to
Washburn University. He was the President of the Ichabod
Club and named Outstanding Ichabod of the Year from 1976-77. He was
certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, a
member of both the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive
Surgery and the American Association of Plastic Surgery.
He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Topeka where he
served as an Elder. Dr. Kelley was a long time member
of the Topeka Fellowship, which is actively involved in the annual
Governor's Prayer Breakfast. Dr. Kelley married Elizabeth
Ramsey on September 15, 1945, in Tulsa, OK. She survives. Other
survivors include their children: Ann Kelley, Santa Cruz,
CA, Carolyn Kelley, Seattle, WA, Patricia Kelley Ladue, Phoenix, AZ; and
three grandsons, Tyler Ladue, Travis Ladue and Scotland
Schieber. He was preceded in death by his sister, Addie Calhoun. Funeral
services will be held at 1 p.m., on Friday, August
14, 2009, at First Presbyterian Church. Dr. Kelley will lie in state at
Penwell-Gabel Mid Town Chapel after 2 p.m., on Thursday
and visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Memorial contributions may be
made to First Presbyterian Church, 817 SW Harrison,
Topeka, KS 66612 or the J.W. & Elizabeth R. Kelley Athletic
Endowment Fund, c/o Washburn University, 1700 SW College, Topeka,
KS 66621. To leave a special message for the family online, visit
www.PenwellGabelTopeka.com

LOUIS ERRICHIELLO, 71, RETIRED HOUSE PAINTER

Staten Island Advance (NY) - Sunday, December 18, 1994

Page: A41

Louis Errichiello, 71, of Great Kills, a retired painter, died yesterday at home.
Born in Rosebank, Mr. Errichiello, moved to Tompkinsville in 1950 and to Great Kills in 1974.
He was a graduate of New Dorp High School.
Mr. Errichiello served in the Army during World War II in the European Theater from 1941 to 1945 as a medic with the
5th Auxiliary Surgical Group .
He was a house painter for the Garmel Painting Co. of Manhattan for almost 30 years, retiring in 1990.
Mr. Errichiello was a member of the Labetti Veterans of Foreign Wars Post, Rosebank, and the Columbian Lyceum bowling
league.
Mr. Errichiello was a parishioner of St. Clare's R.C. Church, Great Kills.
He is survived by his wife, the former Loretta Mannino; a son, Louis; two daughters, Linda Couch and Lois Ingram; and
six grandchildren.
The funeral will be Tuesday from the Matthew Funeral Home, Willowbrook, with a mass at 10 a.m. in St. Clare's Church.
Burial will be in Moravian Cemetery, New Dorp.

OBITUARIES
-
Edith Perkinson, nurse, home care trainer

The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution - Sunday, March 7, 1999

A nurse in World War II's Battle of the Bulge, Edith Ann "Doss" Perkinson of Atlanta was no stranger to suffering. Later
in life she was still working to alleviate it, ensuring that Atlanta nurses could provide quality home care. "To my mother,
if you needed care, you needed care. Period," said her daughter, Coe Perkinson of New York. "If that meant that a nurse had
to come to you, so be it."

Mrs. Perkinson, who died at her residence Wednesday of complications from Parkinson's disease, served as the president
of the Visiting Nurses Association of Atlanta during the 1960s. By recruiting nurses and overseeing home care training and
fund-raising, she helped make home nursing more widespread in the area. Mrs. Perkinson's memorial service will be at 2 p.m.
Monday at St. Anne's Episcopal Church. The body was cremated. Cremation Society of Georgia is in charge of arrangements.

A member of the Tlingit tribe of Native Americans, Mrs. Perkinson was born in Cordova, Alaska. Graduating from Hartford
Hospital School of Nursing in Connecticut and the University of Rochester in New York state, Mrs. Perkinson specialized in
neurological surgery and joined the Army. She was sent to Europe with the
5th Auxiliary Surgical Group
. She later said her life became a blur as she worked with a mobile field hospital in heavy combat. "They were moving
around an awful lot, maybe threedays in one place, then they'd have to evacuate those they could and move somewhere else where
the fighting was more severe and the casualties greater," said her husband, Dr. Neil Perkinson, a surgical oncologist. "They
didn't have helicopters in the Army back then. Everything was done by ambulance, so they had to be as close to the front as
possible." Returning stateside, Mrs. Perkinson met her husband while the two were working at a hospital in New York. They
married in 1951 and moved to Atlanta in 1956, where Mrs. Perkinson kept busy raising their children, gardening and leading
a Campfire Girls group. She also belonged to the Medical Association of Atlanta's Auxiliary. In 1974, Mrs. Perkinson returned
to work, taking a position with the Emory University School of Medicine's dermatology department. She served as administrator
of a research grant on skin cancers, overseeing the project's scientists. "She knew medical terms and had the experience;
that's why they hired her," said Dr. Perkinson."She had to train the other people they hired." Survivors other than her husband
and daughter include three sons, Bill Perkinson and Neil Perkinson Jr., both of Atlanta, and Paul Perkinson of Winnetka, Ill.;
a brother, Jerald Lucchini of Seattle; and three grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family requested that contributions
be made to St. Anne's Episcopal Church, 3098 Northside Parkway N.E., Atlanta, GA 30327.

I suppose you are awaiting this
letter as it has been some time since last I wrote you.

The war has ended and the so called
"Peace” is just around the corner, I hope.

If and when it does get here I will
be home, which according to present plans should not be far off. This will be my last letter for a while and
the next time you will hear from me by phone if all goes well in Tokyo.
Otherwise by mail.

I will call in the evening so be on
the look out for the telephone bell.

Well all for this time and a lot more
later when we have a 30 day reunion.

As always,

All my Love,

Your son,

Stanley

On the USS Ballou

USS General C. C. Ballou (AP-157) was a General G. O.
Squier-class transport ship for the U.S. Navy in World War II. She was named in
honor of U.S. Army general Charles Clarendon Ballou. She was transferred to the
U.S. Army as USAT General C. C. Ballou in 1946. On 1 March 1950 she was
transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) as USNS General
C. C. Ballou (T-AP-157). She was later sold for commercial operation under
several names before being scrapped some time after 1981.[1

Following
shakedown off San Diego, General C. C. Ballou departed San Pedro 29 July 1945
for France via the Panama Canal. She arrived Marseilles after the Japanese
surrender, and sailed with returning veterans 23 August bound for Hampton
Roads.

A few lines today to let you know I
am still here and in the light of the present events, I may be for some time to
come. Who knows.

We here in the ETO wonder a lot about our future, but it always ends up with no
wonder or decision on our part and in fact why should we as the army eventually
gets around to us.

In regards to the present situation,
I feel that they have sent Japan a
very good answer to their question. I
certainly was not in favor of accepting them on their term. We would be establishing a God in Japan,
which I feel would some day again turn on us.
A good housecleaning is what they need there now and a few more months
on my part and the rest of us here and there, I am inclined to think would be
worth it. We have had so much grief and
discomfort, that I think they should pay dearly for it. The strange thing is that a great many of us
feel the same way about it. I could go
on for hours and perhaps a lot would not pass the cursor so I will stop here.

I feel that finally we have someone
who can deal with our allies with a little horse sense. Truman
has surprised me a great deal and I think he is more capable of driving a
hard bargain than Roosevelt around a
Peace table. He could perhaps be even a little more
stern. If we do not watch out for
ourselves now, it will be too late at another time when there are no bones to
be picked.

On another subject, the weather here,
I can say it has been very strange. The
first few weeks here the weather varied very little, but recently it has
changed. We now have a few cooler days
with clouds quite often and even rain at times, such as today.

Enclosed you will find a picture
which Olson took of me while sitting
behind a box taking care of Immunization
records which we were still at Marburg,
Germany.

Also find enclosed a newspaper
clipping[1]
from the Army newspaper here, which
came out for interviews the other day.
They certainly made a mess of it too.
My original statement was much longer and quite different. The others of our organization are
underlined.

We are going to have chicken today
and I hope it is better than it has been in the past. They have trouble of not cooking things well enough
here.

Well you can begin getting my room
ready for my arrival home a year from now.

Sitting here in the doorway of the
dispensary, looking out over the camp toward the water.I can see a very beautiful sunset, which is
quite a bit like a California sunset in a way.Have been C2 here all day and have done practically nothing other than
waste time.

Kupfer is
going to the Riviera tomorrow along
with some others.It should be quite
nice there, but perhaps a little warm.I
did not care for it as I want relaxation and a chance to get away from GIs for
a change. And I could not do it here on a trip of that kind.We have never really had any decent passes as
other organizations have had and a lot of them have been here a much shorter
time than we have.

Aug 9, 45

Well the news here today sounds quite
interesting and it begins to look as tho the war may be shortened some. From
where I sit I can still see no sooner release for me.

As the radio states, the main topic of discussion here is the Atom bomb[1].Wild stories certainly start easily on
something of that type.

The other day I went into town with
another fellow here and we went out on the motor boat cruise around the
bay.It was quite interesting and it
made it possible for us to see a lot more of the bay.They have an extremely beautiful coastline
here and it looks much nicer from the ocean.

The other night we had a very severe
rain and lightning storm here.It was by far the heaviest rain I have ever
seen.In a short time we had a stream
running thru the tent.It at least kept
the dust down for a couple of days, giving us some relief from that for a
while.

I have seen three or four fairly good
shows recently.One was “Together Again” with Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer.I thought it
very good and recommend it to you for a good show.The other was “Practically Yours” with Claudette
Colbert.It was a very amusing story
and well acted.The other, which perhaps
you would not care for was “Salome When She Danced”.Very colorful and very expensively produced.
Withnothing else to do a show provides
good entertainment in the outdoor theaters here, since we have no lights in our
tents.I grow weary of writing since we
have had no mail for some time.

I can think of no more to write of so
I will close sending my love to you all there.

As afore said, our mail has ceased
coming, so I have not heard from you for some time.

The weather here has been nice for
all but one day when we had a violent wind and a lot of dust all over
everything as a result.That day I took
off for town and remained there all day but returned to find no difference.

Had intended on meeting Sgt Olson in town and going for a boat
trip, but the sea was much too rough.He
was transferred from the unit here along with a few other high pointers and is
stationed not far from here at one of the general hospitals.Had I mentioned previously of him being a
father shortly after the first of the year?

Have just about given up learning
Bridge as there is no one here who really knows all there I about it.Perhaps would be very interesting otherwise.

My friend in the Evacuation hospital which you may recall is on his way home after
being here only since January.They are
being redeployed thru the states.

Kupfer and I
are debating on one of two languages to take Spanish or Portuguese.I am for some reason in favor of the
latter.It seems to appeal to me a
little more.It would be much easier for
me and for him of two work together on something of that type.

Near here are some old Roman ruins which should be quite
interesting.I would like to go out
there sometimes also.This district is
quite ancient in historic value.

There are districts here in Marseille
which would put a person in mind of the motion picture “Algiers”.The narrow streets and the steep narrow
stairways. I suppose the houses are a
mass of walls, tunnels and doorways, the same as any “Casbah” would be.

Well this is about all for now so I
close sending you all there my Love, from here.

Stanley Safford

Disclaimer

These letters are being transcribed in their original format.I thought about taking out the parts I found objectionable but that would not be a true transcription if I did. I have corrected the spelling in places to ensure correct comprehension.If some words offend some, please remember to put them in the context of the 1940s in America. Not to excuse racism, which I abhor. My purpose in transcribing these is to find a new historical point of view.